Crave

(Credit: Anastacia Spada)

I'm all for recycling, but this may be just a little too much: using X-rays as umbrella sheets.

X-ray film is not cheap to begin with, and you'll need 24 large ones to complete this do-it-yourself project. So you may end up with a brolly that's unique (after all, no one else can have the same fracture), but at a cost.

You will also need a pair of scissors to cut the fabric from a golf umbrella, a sewing machine, a grommet punch (a tool to make holes), and clear zip ties. Complete graphical instructions on how to make your own X-ray umbrella are available on designer Anastacia Spada's Web site at Coroflot.

(Credit: Anastacia Spada)

(Source: Crave Asia via Newlaunches)

(Credit: Tokyu Hands)

Most people have probably come across the following scenario at least once. You've just done your grocery shopping at the supermarket. Lo and behold, it starts to pour the moment you step out. You may have a brolly, but your hands are full with shopping bags. You can either run the risk of breaking your arm by transferring everything onto one hand and using the other to hold the umbrella. Or you can wrap the handle of the brolly under and around your shoulder.

(Credit: Tokyu Hands)

At least that's what one doctor who happens to be familiar with the structure of the shoulder wants you to do.

The Shoulderbrella features a 30-inch flexi handle with a diameter of about 1.2 inches made from synthetic rubber. To afffix it, simply screw one end of the handle to the umbrella and bend it to your desired fit. The Shoulderbrella is available online at Japanese superstore Tokyu Hands for about $26.

(Source: Crave Asia via Red Ferret Journal)

(Credit: Firebox)

Rainy days are good for only one activity: sleeping in.

Unfortunately for those who still have to earn their keep, there's the weather to deal with. Which is why we're big fans of high-tech brollies here at Crave. They keep us (relatively) dry and make the journey less of a sodden trudge.

Two versions of the Twilight Umbrellas are available: the Starlight with sparkling white lights and the Spectrum with phasing multicolored lights. These attention-seeking LEDs require three AAA batteries and can be turned off. The inner lining is silver, but black on the outside. The umbrellas are available now on Firebox for $41.

(Source: Crave Asia)

(Credit: Matthew Swinton)

(Credit: Matthew Swinton)

One of the things I don't like about brollies is that by and large, their design hasn't changed much, save for the occasional gimmick. However, designer Matthew Swinton's brolly concept may just grow on you, literally.

The canopy of the Sprout Umbrella (looks more like a bulb thermometer to me) is hidden within the shaft. When you slide the knob up, the bendable plastic arms of the canopy extend outward, resembling a growing bean sprout.

The above picture shows a full-size brolly, but we assume this idea can also be applied to portable tote bag-friendly versions. There's also no need to worry about finding a plastic bag to contain the umbrella when it's wet. Great, isn't it?

(Source: Crave Asia)

(Credit: Uncommon Goods)

I still plan on living out my childhood ninja fantasies: jumping across thatched straw rooftops, stealing precious family heirlooms in the middle of the night, throwing pointy stars, and honoring my giant rat sensei by ridding the world of mutated rhinos and warthogs. And now I won't have to worry about getting wet in the process.

The handle to this Ninja Umbrella resembles the old samurai katanas of yore, replete with a crossed grip hilt and a cloth scabbard that you can swing across your back when the sun comes out. The umbrella section expands to a 3-foot-long canopy, and you can buy it here for $30. Do yourself a favor and don't read the description on there that claims ninjas do karate--everyone knows that NINJAS do NINJITSU. Duh.

(Credit: Samm's Umbrellas)

Oprah loves it and it could be the next darling for advertisers, too.

Unlike conventional dome-shaped brollys, the Bocap Brella looks like an oversize bottle cap that drops vertically at the edge like a skirt. It's not clear how the wind breaks when it hits the umbrella, though its unique design is engineered to resist brolly inversion, which is a common occurrence for those living in the tropics.

The flat top, with a diameter between 16 inches and 40 inches, also means more real estate for advertising messages or pop art.

There's some of that incomprehensible patent literature here if you are into the details. Otherwise, surf on over to Samm's Umbrellas for the order form.

(Via Crave Asia)

(Credit: Yanko Design)

There are countless umbrella inventions that aim to make your walk in the rain a little more bearable. Some let you listen to music or catch a movie on the underside of your brollie. Korean designer Sang-Kyun Park's LightDrops creation lights your way in the rain.

According to the writeup on Yanko Design, the outside canopy has a conductive membrane called PDVF. As rain comes down, the impact generates electrical energy that powers built-in LEDs on the umbrella. The harder the rain hits, the brighter the light. Now that's literally a brilliant idea, but the lights better be waterproof or you'll end up as an electrifying light show.

(Credit: Yanko Design)

(Via Crave Asia)

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'Lightsaber Umbrella' for dry nerdiness

Nanotech umbrella doesn't like water

Watch YouTube on your umbrella

Open this umbrella to play your iPod

Why would Darth Vader need an umbrella?

There's a new self-serve extended warranty program for consumer goods launching Saturday night: GreenUmbrella. Unlike the typical extended warranties you may get when you buy products, this is an umbrella plan: $9.95 a month covers nearly everything you own. It's a good deal when compared with other extended warranties, although that's not saying much.

The cool thing with GreenUmbrella is that if you are on the plan, you can just say, "No, thanks" when the drone at Best Buy tries to push the extended warranty on you. The GreenUmbrella program covers repairs to your computers, game consoles, cameras, refrigerators, TVs, air conditioners, etc. Anything less than $5,000 is eligible, and is covered for three years from purchase date.

To get a new purchase into the system, all you have to do is go online and enter the info about it. You don't need your receipts to register a product, but you will when you file a claim.

Repairs are handled by The Warranty Group, which maintains a network of certified repair shops for consumer goods. When you call in with a claim, ultimately you'll be routed to one of their providers for the repair or replacement of your item.

There are limitations, however. The service does not cover accidental breakage, doesn't cover your mobile phone, and doesn't cover products more than 3 years old. Also, keep in mind that all new products come with their own warranties. If you have a device that fails during the period of the warranty that comes with the product, GreenUmbrella might help a bit by offering a smoother experience through its service bureau, or by covering, perhaps, consumable parts (like a projector bulb) on a repair for a product whose native warranty only covers malfunctions.

But for the most part, the GreenUmbrella plan only covers products during their most healthy period--the two-plus years that fall between the product's in-warranty infancy (when it is most likely to fail), and its slip into creaky senescence when it's more likely to suffer wear-related problems or become obsolete. It's when you are most likely to need the plan that your products will not be eligible for its services.

You can put a product on your warranty plan after you've purchased it.

(Credit: GreenUmbrella)

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If it's flashing, you'd better take it.

(Credit: Ambient Devices)

The folks from Ambient Devices came by the office yesterday to give me a look at the company's upcoming products and also let me know that their new weather-forecasting umbrella is now on sale. The Ambient Umbrella, which automatically receives weather data from Accuweather.com via Ambient's Infocast Network, has made some appearances on blogs, but it's now an official product with an official price tag of $125--though it's selling for $139 at Hammacher Schlemmer. I saw the thing in action, and while it isn't exactly super high-tech, the handle of the umbrella has a little ring of blue LED lights that start flashing when rain is forecast.

According to the press release, "The Ambient Umbrella's handle illuminates when precipitation is expected, to remind the user to carry the umbrella. The Ambient Umbrella is designed to stand by upright by the door, near a coat rack or in an umbrella stand--so it will be visible whenever the user goes outdoors. The handle's illumination behavior changes according to the forecast; for example, the handle shows soft, intermittent pulses for light rain, and very rapid, intense patterns for thunderstorms.

"The Umbrella has a high-quality, 'gust-buster' dual-canopy design and requires very simple activation via the Ambient Devices customer service phone line. The Ambient Umbrella will provide a year or more of battery life with one 'C' cell battery."

Needless to say, rain or not, this is one umbrella you might not want to take out on the town for a night of heavy drinking, which studies show correlates to a near 100 percent chance of losing your umbrella. While $125 (or $139, as the case may be) may seem like a lot for an item that I'm used to buying on a New York City street corner for $3, I can see how an affluent, weather-challenged person might think it well worth the dough.

It's bad luck to open this umbrella inside too.

(Credit: Ambient Devices)